One Step At A Time
by always krissy
Summary: Conner overreacts and it all goes down hill from there. CK.


TITLE: One Step At A Time  
AUTHOR: Krissy  
DISCLAIMER: Power Rangers, in all forms, belong to Disney.  
NOTES: This fic has an AU feel to it because it takes place once the whole 'Thunder Storm' is over. There are spoilers for part one. Not too big a deal though.  
RATING: PG-13, for a tiny bit of language  
PAIRING: Conner/Kira primarily, with implications of Kira/Blake, Blake/Tori and Kira/Trent

**--1--**  
  
Conner scowled, looking away from the scene in front of him. The scene, which was Kira and Blake saying goodbye, was disgusting. It was worse than when Kira made eyes with Trent. Because this time... something might actually happen. The very thought was nauseating. Kira wasn't supposed to like anyone except Trent. With Trent he knew nothing would happen; nothing could. Kira would never trust him enough to kiss her, or touch her, or anything remotely serious. But Blake... This was all new. And Conner felt the first tugs of real jealousy.  
  
"Hey, man," Ethan's voice brought Conner back to the present and he turned his head, giving Ethan a half smile.  
  
"Hey, Ethan," he acknowledged. Conner's smile melted into a frown as he turned back sharply at Kira's loud giggle. Kira didn't... giggle. This was new, he thought, as he continued to watch them. Blake's hand was on her shoulder, and his head was bent close to her ear, whispering something. Her eyes were closed and she shivered as she moved slightly away. Hopefully due to bad breath, Conner thought nastily.  
  
"Are you okay?" Ethan asked slowly. Conner didn't respond, but jumped violently when Ethan shoved him. "Stop staring at them. Dude, let it go. It isn't like they are going to get married or anything."  
  
"Way to be supportive," Conner said, sarcastically, as he straightened himself up.  
  
"I'm being serious," Ethan objected loudly, and had the grace to blush when Blake and Kira glanced surprisingly over at them. When they turned back to each other, Ethan lowered his voice, "Look at her track record with Trent. You have nothing to worry about."  
  
"Trent tried to kill us; Blake didn't. I can hardly compare him to _Trent_."  
  
Ethan shrugged, "Yeah, well... You haven't seen the way she's looked at you. She likes you, Conner."  
  
"Maybe she did, but now..."  
  
"Have some faith."  
  
"They even _LOOK_ cute together!" he exploded. He ignored the silence that fell all around them, not even noticing Kira and Blake nearing, in his rage. "Don't 'have some faith' me. You didn't listen to me when I told you that Cassidy likes you still, so don't patronize me. She likes him; I can tell these things. Besides, it would probably be good for her, as awful as it sounds. Stupid girls," he finished underneath his breath.  
  
"You better not be talking about me," a quiet voice said behind him. Conner froze, but unable to turn himself around. The hurt in her sentence was audible. "Look, Blake, you better go now. Your friends look like they need you."  
  
"Sure," he replied easily. He leaned over and pecked her cheek, before whispering a promise to call, and was gone.  
  
Kira looked between Ethan and Conner. She opened her mouth to demand an answer, but instead, shook her head and strode past them to Conner's car.  
  
"Let's just go home," Ethan said, and gently, he guided his friend forward to his car. Things would blow over. They always did.  
  
**--2--**  
  
Days later, Kira still wasn't over Conner's outburst. She couldn't believe how he'd reacted to Blake. It wasn't even like they were going to go out. He was just a nice guy that she liked to be around. Like Conner. And Ethan. And Trent. Besides, he was dating Tori Hanson, and even Kira hadn't been blind to the looks that Blake and Tori shared after she had been freed from Lothor's spell.  
  
Maybe, Kira finally admitted to herself, as she stared up at her blue ceiling, Conner did have a reason to get angry. She counted the plastic glow-in-the-dark stars and allowed her thoughts to drift back to Conner's behavior that day. He'd been childish and immature and handled a situation badly, but it wasn't like she hadn't added to the fuel. Giggling at Blake's words, allowing him to kiss her, and well... acting like Cassidy.  
  
The phone rang suddenly and Kira quickly scrambled to her feet and lunged for the pale yellow phone on her desk. She knocked over her pile of books for school and cursed beneath her breath. Leaving them scattered on the floor, she grabbed the receiver. "Hello?" she asked breathlessly.  
  
"Kira? Hi, it's Blake."  
  
A smile split Kira's face nearly in half. "Yeah, it's me. I mean, hey. What's up?"  
  
"Nothing; I just wanted to see how you were doing. I promised I would call, so I am. Did you, uh, get everything straightened out with... Conner?"  
  
Kira scowled, "No," she replied shortly. "I have barely spoken a word to him since you left. Just enough to do Rangering stuff, and just let me say," she paused, "Mesogog hasn't let up since Lothor disappeared back into the Abyss of Evil."  
  
"Oh, well I'm sorry about that. Lothor inspires, I guess. Anyway, how's Cam doing? I know he was going to stick around you guys for a while. Something about wanting to chat up Hayley?"  
  
Kira's mouth fell open in surprise. "He actually said that?"  
  
Blake laughed, "No. That's just how Hunter and I interpreted him. We can read him, man."  
  
Kira relaxed again, and shook her head ruefully. It was almost like talking to Conner. "Well, he's fine, I guess. I haven't seen him much. Hayley must keep him chained up in her house or something."  
  
"Now who's crackin' jokes?" Blake teased. "Well, in any case, he should be at home. He really likes her; he wouldn't stop talking about her for days the first time they spoke."  
  
They fell into a comfortable silence, and Kira tried to think of something to say. "So... How's Tori?"  
  
Blake sighed, "I wouldn't know. She headed back with the others to the school. She seemed okay; kept avoiding my gaze and wouldn't talk to me. She feels guilty, I know that. Now I can understand her."  
  
"How?" Kira asked curiously.  
  
"I was evil once, you know."  
  
This surprised Kira. "You were?"  
  
"Yeah, Hunter and me. Brainwashed. And we thought the rangers' mentor killed our parents and we were on a power trip and we nearly mauled them all."  
  
"Oh," Kira digested this. His words brought back brief memories of the history diary they had watched when looking for Doctor Oliver. "I'm glad you guys broke through it," she said truthfully.  
  
"If it wasn't for Tori, Cam, Dustin and Shane... I doubt we would have made it. And now... she won't let me help her in the way she helped me. It's hard, you know? To watch someone you love hurt."  
  
Her mind wandered, thinking about her own ranger team. Trent had been in the same boat as Blake, but who did he have? No one. It wasn't Trent's fault, like it hadn't been Blake's fault, or Doctor O.'s fault. Conner and Ethan barely tolerated him, and herself? Kira hadn't allowed herself to be alone once with him since he'd broken free of the spell that had branded him. Her thoughts were cut off when Blake spoke again.  
  
"Well, I better go. My manager wants us to turn in early. Long trip for the next race. Up in Washington."  
  
"So soon?" Kira asked, disappointed. "Well, I'm sure things will work out between you and Tori. Just be there for her and you'll both be fine."  
  
"Yeah... Well, good night, and take care. I'll call you again soon. And you might want to talk to Conner, or something. He probably feels like a fool. Go easy on him; it's hard to like someone when they don't like you back."  
  
Kira didn't know how to reply and softly echoed his good night. As she hung up the phone, she thought about Blake's words.  
  
'It's hard to like someone.'  
  
How right he was.  
  
**--3--**  
  
"Dude, just get over it."  
  
Conner's familiar scowl darkened as he turned his gaze onto his best friend. Ethan looked back at him, impatience and annoyance painted across his face. He hadn't entered the room, and Conner was grateful for that much. Now if only he'd leave and stop loitering around.  
  
"Go 'way," Conner muttered. He sat on his unmade bed, his back against the headboard. His bedroom reflected his mood. Clothes covered the navy blue carpet and the desk chair was toppled to the side, as if kicked away. The desk's surface was covered in his school books and his bag lay half full on top of them.  
  
"Look, sitting here and wallowing in anger and pity won't stop Kira being mad at you."  
  
"It'll help me," he countered. He knew he was being childish, but so what? If Kira could pretend he didn't exist, Conner could sulk.  
  
Ethan gave him a disbelieving stare. "Con, man, just knock it off. I'd be mad if I were Kira, too, you know. You messed up. She heard everything. You handled the situation like a kid. You could have at least waited until we were alone to yell."  
  
"It doesn't matter," Conner said. He stared at his sock clad feet, unable to look at his friend again. He knew he had messed up, but watching Kira like someone else was torture. Maybe he hadn't liked her back when they'd first met Trent, but as they grew closer, and as Kira had grown closer to Trent before his bout with evil, it had begun to ache. Krista had just been a distraction, he knew. Ethan knew it, Trent knew it, and hell, maybe even Kira knew it.  
  
"It does," Ethan argued. "Look Conner, can I give you some advice?"  
  
"Only if it will shut you up," Conner sighed. "I'm not in the mood, okay? Tell me and go."  
  
"You're never in the mood now." Ethan made a face. "You're such a girl."  
  
"And you're a geek, what's your point?"  
  
"Harsh, man."  
  
Conner snorted, "Whatever. So..."  
  
"Call her," Ethan held a hand up at Conner's objection. "Swallow your pride and be a man. She's hurting and confused and you're not much better. If you're nice, I'll tell you a secret."  
  
Conner didn't respond and continued to moodily stare at his feet.  
  
"OK, since you don't object, I'll tell you. Kira doesn't like Blake. _She told me_. They're friends. He's in love with that Tori chick."  
  
"They sure looked like 'friends' to me."  
  
"Just like how you and Krista looked _just like friends_ when we were at the Cybercafe that day?"  
  
"That's different."  
  
"_How_?" Ethan sounded like he was going to explode at any second and his tone made Conner look up in alarm. Ethan never got angry; always the peace maker.  
  
"It just is."  
  
"You know what? Fine. I don't care. If you want to ruin the great friendship and team we share, fine. Just don't come running to me when your stupidity gets us killed in battle."  
  
Ethan left seconds later, disgusted at Conner's refusal to speak, and Conner felt no where near better than he had before.  
  
**--4--**  
  
Kira fingered her phone, willing it to ring. Blake had promised to call again, but she knew it was still too early for him to do it. They'd just spoken the night before and Kira missed him. He'd become a positive influence in her life already and they barely knew each other.  
  
'It must be something about being Rangers,' she decided. 'It brings you closer together.'  
  
She thought about how quickly she'd become friends with Conner and Ethan once they had begun to share their secret. It had seemed impossible. What did a freak, a geek, and a jock have in common? Sometimes she still wondered how they'd managed. How they still did.  
  
It was starting to crumble apart and it was all her fault.  
  
Conner's outburst had been no more unusual than other stupid things he said weekly. It wasn't like he'd been purposely trying to hurt her. It was a misunderstanding and if she didn't correct it now, it would be their undoing.  
  
Taking a deep breath, she picked up her phone and pressed the speed dial.  
  
It rang three times before it was picked up.  
  
"Hey, McKnight residence."  
  
"Conner?" she asked, uncertainly.  
  
"Naw, its Eric."  
  
Kira started in surprise at the name.  
  
"His brother Eric?"  
  
"The one and the same. Who's this?"  
  
"Kira."  
  
"Ah, he's told me a lot about you. Did you guys have a fight or somethin'? 'Cause, dude, he's been sulking since I got here for the summer."  
  
"Something like that," Kira said vaguely. "Is he there? I need to talk to him."  
  
"Yeah, I'll get him."  
  
"Don't tell him it's me, OK? He probably won't come to the phone if you do."  
  
"Like I'm that dense."  
  
Kira bit her lip to keep from responding. She didn't know Eric, but if he was anything like Conner...  
  
"Yo, bro, some chick's on the phone for you!"  
  
Kira winced at the bellow; Eric obviously didn't set the receiver down first. 'Yep,' she thought amused, 'just like Conner.'  
  
"Conner."  
  
The rough sound of Conner's voice took Kira by surprise a few seconds later. 'Did I do that?' she wondered.  
  
"Hi, Conner, it's Kira."  
  
There was silence on the other end.  
  
"...Hi."  
  
"I wanted to apologize to you," Kira said, trying to fill the silence as it returned. "I'm sorry I've been immature the past few days. I should've talked to you instead of ignoring you for days on end. I'm sorry," she finished lamely.  
  
"Forget it," he quickly replied. "It was my fault; you have nothing to be sorry for. It's me who is sorry. I was wrong to say the things I did, especially in public."  
  
"You don't have to be jealous," she began, and she ignored his spluttered protest. Her voice was laced with fear but she ploughed ahead. "Blake and I talked last night." Kira didn't miss the intake of breath, "And he told me something interesting."  
  
"Oh?"  
  
"Yeah. He said it was hard to like someone when they didn't like you back."  
  
"I'm sorry that he doesn't return your feelings." It was said stiffly and rushed.  
  
Kira took a deep breath before letting it out slowly. She would ignore that, because if she didn't, they'd be right back where they'd began. "He was talking about you. And he was wrong."  
  
"What?" The question had been so soft that Kira almost missed it.  
  
"I know you like me," she admitted. "And he was wrong, because.... I do like you, OK? How could I not? You've been there for so long but I didn't notice until it had been taken away. The last few days have been _hell_," she stressed, "and I don't want to repeat them. Ever."  
  
"As friends, I get it." Conner's words were forced and traced with his usual casualness.  
  
As just friends? Kira wondered. No, things were too far past that stage now, and Kira didn't know how to stop them. She didn't even know if she wanted to. "No," Kira corrected, "as something more. I think I've known it all along, but there were always distractions and other people. I want to try it, Conner. I want to be an 'us.' If you'll have me."  
  
The silence fell between them again and Kira sagged against her desk chair. It was all out there now. He could take it or leave it, and Kira felt deathfully afraid he'd laugh her off. There was no turning back now.  
  
"What changed?"  
  
"Me. You. Everything," she admitted.  
  
"Maybe I believe you," Conner started, but seemed to hesitate. "But what about Trent?"  
  
"What about him?"  
  
"Aren't you and him... well...?"  
  
Kira sighed, "There was something there once, but... No. He and I decided on just being friends a while back. It just wasn't working. Bad blood, you know? And there wasn't anything to tell so we didn't broadcast it."  
  
"_You_ should've told _us_," Conner accused.  
  
"_You_ should have told _me_," Kira countered.  
  
"Point," Conner said, and he laughed, and Kira felt her heart soar for the first time. "So..."  
  
"So..." Kira echoed him. "Want to come over? I have to study for Doctor O.'s midterm still, and I bet you haven't done much about it either."  
  
"Sure, just let me get cleaned up and I'll be there in an hour."  
  
Kira returned the phone to the cradle after saying a quiet goodbye and she leaned back in the chair.  
  
They'd have a lot of obstacles. They'd never hear the end of it from Ethan.  
  
But that was all OK.  
  
They were in it together, and Kira couldn't see it end any other way. 


End file.
